Timothy Dutton QC
Call Date
1979
Silk date
1998
Summary of Practice
(A) General Commercial (B) Public, Regulatory, and Administrative Law (C) Professional (Professional Negligence and Disciplinary including sports)
Recommendations (Practitioners' Guides)
Recommended by Chambers Guide for Administrative Law, Professional Discipline, and Professional Negligence.
Published and lectured widely.
Appointments
Chairman of the Bar Council 2008
Recent Practice
Tim Dutton's practice encompasses General Commercial, Public, Regulatory, and Administrative Law and Professional (Professional Negligence and Disciplinary including sports)
However, Timothy has for many years conducted a substantial specialist practice in professional discipline, and the related professional negligence and public law matters which arise in large disciplinary cases. He appears at all levels from Tribunal to House of Lords. He is often involved by clients to guide teams in inter-related matters involving both regulatory/disciplinary proceedings and the public law and private law issues arising out of them. He has written and lectured widely on the subject at regulatory and disciplinary law seminars and conferences.
For the Accountancy Profession he has led in large audit cases: e.g. Barings (whether the audits were properly conducted and the fine imposed by the JDS of £1m too high – reduced on appeal to £250,000) (2001), Polly Peck (the auditor’s conduct of Asil Nadi’s companies) (2002), Resort Hotels (chief executive laying a false paper trial and deceiving the auditors) (2001), Equitable Life (Public Law challenges to the disciplinary inquiry by the JDS of the auditors), Wickes (2005) (acting for the audit partner misled by the directors who conducted a massive discount operation running a separate set of contracts) Queen’s Moat House Hotels (acting for the auditors in relation to the audits where there was an allegedly massive overstatement of assets 2004), Trans Tec (acting for the auditors of the companies of which Geoffrey Robinson had been chairman. The directors withheld information from the auditors which led to the company being put into liquidation and a DTI Inquiry) (2006), Wiggins group Plc (Acting for Kidsons and the audit partners in the contested JDS hearing and successful appeal on penalty 2006,) acted for the liquidator in the proceedings brought against him by the ICAEW in the Dot-Com “bubble” case arising out of the collapse of Boo-Com (2006). He has appeared in other cases involving the Accountancy Profession and has advised the profession and firms on numerous regulatory and disciplinary issues.
For many years he has been retained in significant cases involving solicitors and barristers. He has advised and acted either for the Regulator or for many solicitors either seeking advice in difficult ongoing matters or on the receiving end of proceedings: he has advised and acted for the Law Society (now the SRA) in a very wide range of disciplinary cases. In recent years he has led for the Law Society in their proceedings against Paul Simms [2005] EWCA Civ 849 (multi-million dollar “investments” and complex but dishonest transactions: intervention upheld and Simms struck off the Roll), Paul Baxendale-Walker (2006-2007) (offshore tax schemes in which Baxendale-Walker acted as the “puppet master” – struck off the Roll, Wilson-Smith (investment schemes involving about £50million conducted improperly by the solicitor – struck off 2006), Landale (high yield schemes leading to intervention into the practice and suspension for three years 2004), Barnett (“escrow agent” transactions conducted dishonestly by the solicitor who was struck off the roll 2006), Law Society v Malik (registered foreign lawyer involved in public funding abuse involving sums up to of £1m, struck off the register and appeal disallowed in 2007. He has conducted many cases resulting from disciplinary interventions e.g. the interventions into the practices of the prominent Liverpool solicitor Dooley and Co (2001), Bower Cotton/Simms (2003-2005) , Wilson-Smith, Elliott and Co, and many others. In the Court of Appeal he led for the Society in the proceedings resulting from disciplinary interventions e.g. Holder v the Law Society [2003] 1 WLR 1059 (Issues arising under Articles 6, 8 and Art 1 Protocol 1 of the ECHR; Thompson v the Law Society (2005) (Human Rights points taken under article 6 of the ECHR in disciplinary proceedings) Sheikh v the Law Society (2006) in the successful appeal from the decision at first instance where the judge had for the first time in 40 years set aside an intervention on the grounds of suspected dishonesty. He leads teams for the SRA in the numerous proceedings arising out of the notorious Miners Compensation Scheme cases. He is advising in and has led in hearings in the High Court, and the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal and applications arising out of approximately 50 sets of inquiries into the conduct of solicitors involved in the Miners Compensation Schemes concerning respiratory diseases and vibration white finger. He has brought two to a successful conclusion this year (MLM and Gabb and Co), leading regulatory settlements in the proceedings which in the case of Gabb and Co has led to an order for “restitution” in a Disciplinary context and thereby causing repayment to miners and their families . In the House of Lords he led for the Society in the landmark case of Sephton v The Law Society [2006] UKHL 22, and for the Appellant/Claimant in Hilton v Barker Booth and Eastwood [2005] UKHL 8. He argued for, and won, the “public interest” costs principles which were confirmed by the Divisional Court and Court of Appeal in Baxendale-Walker v The Law Society (No 1) (2007) [2007] EWCA 233. He acted for one of the Freshfields partners involved in the proceedings arising out of the Marks and Spencer takeover battle, against whom the SDT proceedings were withdrawn.
In 2006 he successfully defended a leading QC against charges brought by the Bar Council alleging a conflict of interest, and recently appeared in the successful appeal of a solicitor to the Divisional Court (Shuttari) over-turning an order that she be struck off the Roll – a rare event .
Financial Services: In 2006 he appeared for the FSA before the Financial Services and Markets Tribunal in a number of cases most notably Parker v FSA in their first successful defence of a market abuse charge in abusive spread betting by a former financial controller, where the Tribunal gave guidance about the approach to penalty – imposing a penalty of £250,000. During 2006 he also appeared for the FSA before the Financial Services and Markets Tribunal in the successful defence of their actions in Elliott v FSA (refusal to admit on the grounds of probity), Kunga v FSA (probity), FSA v Tebbutt (led for the FSA in successful resolution of proceedings against former MD of a financial services company), and Duffin v FSA (misconduct and penalty case).
Other Professions: He has advised other professions extensively. He advised and appeared for the GMC in 2006 and 2007 in the proceedings arising out of the inquiry into Dr Wakefield [find ref from Eady J judgments) and others concerning the MMR vaccine, dealing with regulatory disclosure issues.
He has advised the Architects Registration Board on the scope of their disciplinary powers – a summary of his opinion has been published by the ARB on the internet. His work covers all of the professions.
Notable Cases
Appeared in a wide range of reported cases for example;
House of Lords: Hilton v Barker Booth and Eastwood 2005 1 WLR 1597
The Law Society v Sephton and Co 2006 1 WLR 1091
Court of Appeal: Holder v The Law Society CA 2003 1 WLR 1059
Statutory intervention powers of intervention and The Human Rights Act 1998. R(Thompson) v The Law Society 2004 1 WLR 2522. Callery v Gray Nos 1, 2001, 1 WLR 2112 and No 2, 2001, 1 WLR 2142 CA. Bristol and West v Bartlett, Paragon Finance v Banks 2003 1 WLR 284 London Borough of Wandsworth v Railtrack Plc CA 2002 QB 756
High Court: Cable and Wireless v IBM (2002) Commercial Court. Nottingham University v Fishel, Elias J. 2000 ICR 1462, Statutory Trust Test Cases (Chancery Division, Lawrence Collins J) January 2006.
Regulatory and Public Interest Inquiries:
Advised and appeared in a number of large regulatory cases for the regulator and regulated in various jurisdictions e.g. Parker v FSA (2006) (Market Abuse), Barings 2001, Polly Peck Plc 2001, Resort Hotels Plc 2001, Queen's Moat House Hotels 2003, Wickes PLC 2003, Wiggins Group 2004, Trans Tec Plc 2005-6. Law Society v Simms (Investment Transactions), Baxendale-Walker (Tax Schemes), Federal Bank of the Middle East v Governor of Cayman (2002) (Banking).
Other Experience
He has lectured widely and written articles in the area of professional discipline. In 2007 he has given papers and addressed seminars on regulation and discipline on “mitigation in disciplinary proceedings” (Feb 2007), and on Regulation of the Legal Profession, and the Legal Services Bill (July 2007), and at the Oxford Advanced Advocacy Course on Ethics. He is the joint author (with P Goldsmith, T Keith and d Nambisan) of an article on Human Rights in a regulatory context for the IBA (2001).
He chaired the Bar Council working party into Advocacy Training (2002-2004) which led to the establishment of the Advocacy Training Council, and to assessment of advocacy at the Bar. From 2004 to 2006 Timothy was the leader of the South Eastern Circuit, where he had regulatory and disciplinary responsibilities. From 2006 to 2007 he was the Vice Chairman of the General Council of the Bar of England and Wales. He is currently the Chairman of the General Council of the Bar of England and Wales.